Iran has denounced a recent Israeli law legalizing construction of settler units in the occupied Palestinian territories, saying the international community must not remain silent on the regime’s expansionist policies.
Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qassemi on Tuesday said the Israeli regime’s settlement activities are a serious obstacle to establishing security and stability in the region.
He added that the continuation of such a policy violates the Palestinians' right to self-determination as an accepted principle in international law.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran once again calls on the international community to take practical and immediate steps to support the Palestinians’ rightful demands, promote the Palestinian people’s international standing and oppose the Zionist regime’s expansionist policies,” Qassemi said.
He emphasized that the continuation of such policies and measures by the Tel Aviv regime would aggravate regional woes and create more instability.
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On Monday, the Israeli parliament passed a law that would allow the regime to legally seize Palestinian private land. Palestinian land owners would be compensated financially or with other land for their property even if they did not agree to giving it up.
United Nations special coordinator for the so-called Middle East peace process, Nickolay Mladenov, on Tuesday condemned the legislation, saying it set a "very dangerous precedent."
“This is the first time the Israeli Knesset (parliament) legislates in the occupied Palestinian lands and particularly on property issues," Mladenov said, adding, "That crosses a very thick red line."
He also urged strong international condemnation of the legislation and raised the possibility of Israel's prosecution at the International Criminal Court (ICC).